Search Results for: collaboration

October 16, 2015

Sydney leads the way in activity-based working finds global cities report ⁰

by Sara Bean • Facilities management, Flexible working, News, Workplace, Workplace design

If employers want to attract the best, they need to create spaces where their staff want to work, because providing an inspiring and enjoyable office is now the most critical, cost-effective way to successfully attract the world’s most talented employees. Knight Frank’s Global Cities: The 2016 Report highlights a shift in thinking by the newest generation of workers who expect the same kind of environment which historically, was the preserve of technology and media firms. This new office combines collaborative spaces with individual work areas, as well as providing amenities that encourage people to think of work as an extension of home. Sydney is leading the way with just under a third (28 percent) of all offices already offering activity-based working (ABW) for employees, where the workspace is specifically designed to suit the whole range of activities which will be accommodated.

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October 15, 2015

New research uncovers hours lost due to bad tech, meetings and distractions ⁰

by Neil Franklin • News, Technology, Workplace

According to the Productivity at the Office report published this week by comms firm Jabra, UK businesses are continuing to find the creation of a productive workplace challenging. According to the study, although businesses are investing proactively in time and tools for skilled professional office-based staff to effectively collaborate and concentrate with each other, employees continue to face up to 17 different distractions throughout each working day, attend unproductive meetings and struggle to use technology that was originally intended to improve productivity. Amongst the key findings of the report are that 36 percent of respondents think office meetings diminish productivity, 46 percent think noise levels are the most distracting issue in the office and 28 percent are annoyed by too many emails, though 78 percent would rather send an email than make a call to resolve an issue.

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October 12, 2015

How workplace design is more closely reflecting how we actually work ⁰

by Adrian Campbell • Comment, Flexible working, Workplace design

In years gone by, a ‘one size fits all’ approach to office design might have been the norm, but as the decades have progressed, so too have the options available to businesses designing ‘homes from home’ for their office-based workforces. As new interpretations of the office environment proliferated, so the open plan model came to into being and eventually evolved into the default office design model. This initially brought greater variety than ever before but, ultimately, a one size fits all mentality in workplace design ultimately prevailed – every worker was expected to work in certain ways, utilising the equipment and furniture supplied and designed for them. From inception through to occupancy, the average new office involves a six-year period of design and construction involving varying teams of people discussing the best and most attractive solution for the actual end user.

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October 7, 2015

Technology and Trends 15 events offer vision of the future of work ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Events, Facilities management, Insight promotion, Technology, Workplace, Workplace design

A series of executive briefings taking place next week in Central London offers you the chance to learn about the next generation of technologies and their impact on the workplace, working practices and office design. Insight readers can enjoy a 15 percent discount by using this link. Tickets are going fast with some sessions already sold out, so we’d encourage you to book as soon as possible. Technology & Trends 2015 offers an expert analysis on new technologies such as the Internet of Things, Bluetooth Low Energy, iBeacons, smart buildings, wayfinding apps and collaboration tools such as Skype for Business and Surface Hub. Aimed at facilities managers, corporate real estate managers, architects and designers, IT managers and HR professionals, the event takes place at Herman Miller’s National Design Centre. Full details of the event can be found here.

October 5, 2015

Collaborative work goes hand in hand with better talent retention ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Flexible working, News, Technology

Companies are rethinking the tools they use to keep employees engaged and loyal – especially at a time when flexibility and choice are increasingly important to an workforce that craves mobility and choice. A newly released survey from Jive Software claims that as the workforce continues to evolve and new future of work trends emerge, seven out of ten (72 percent) employees want to use more technology in the workplace that enables them to work from anywhere. Furthermore, the same percentage state that the freedom to try tools make them more effective in their job, with 43 percent finding it a powerful loyalty driver. According to the study of 1,000 US based employees, firms are also catching on to future of work trends and the impact that technology can have for employee retention. Eighty-four percent of employers want to implement technology that enable workplace flexibility.

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September 24, 2015

Colleagues more likely than managers to make people feel engaged at work ⁰

by Neil Franklin • Knowledge, News, Workplace

A new report from Oracle claims that the people most likely to make employees feel engaged at work are their peers rather than their managers. The study, Simply Talent, also suggests that employees think their employer’s HR function is least likely to have a positive impact on their engagement levels. The study, which sets out to understand the drivers and benefits of employee engagement in Europe, polled 1,511 employees at large European businesses. The survey claims that 42 percent of employees across Europe believe that their peers have the most positive impact on how engaged they feel at work, well ahead of line managers (21 percent) and business unit managers (7 percent) and HR (3 percent) Conversely, when it comes to negatively affecting engagement, employees believe the senior leadership team (19 percent) and line managers (11 percent) are the most responsible.

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September 21, 2015

Five essential office design trends to look for in the near future ⁰

by Tom Brialey • Comment, Facilities management, Flexible working, Workplace design

Since the early Twentieth Century, business leaders have been experimenting with office design in an attempt to improve productivity. From the sea of forward-facing desks imagined by Frederick Taylor, to the infamous cubicle of the late 1960s, to today’s open-plan office, each innovation has said something about our changing relationship to work. In a Gensler survey with more than 2,000 participants, 90 percent of respondents indicated that better workplace design and layout result in better overall performance. The greatest developments of recent times have emerged from the tech giants of Silicon Valley, where businesses have blended playfulness, company culture and the collaborative benefits of open layouts to craft unique and engaging spaces. So where are we headed? Here are five major trends that are likely to have a lasting impact on the way we work.

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September 14, 2015

Staff already dreading the advent of Gen Z at work, claims report ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Wellbeing, Workplace

If, like us, you’ve grown tired of the endless media focus on Generation Y and its often unfair portrayal based on a clump of stereotypes, then brace yourself. Generation Z, defined as people currently under the age of 19, is now entering the workforce and, according to a new study commissioned by Ricoh Europe, the three demographics it will join at work are dreading it. Nearly two thirds (63 percent) of Baby Boomer, Generation X and Generation Y employees surveyed in in Europe, Middle East and Asia say they expect workplace tensions to increase with the arrival of a fourth generation and half (52 percent) say their employers are already failing to meet the needs of different generations in the workplace. More positively, there was almost universal agreement (89 percent) amongst the 3,300 respondents that a diverse workforce is an asset to a business.

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September 9, 2015

‘Climate smart’ cities could generate global savings of $17 trillion ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Cities, Environment, Facilities management, News, Technology

Newly published research claims that investing in public and low emission transport, building efficiency, and waste management in cities could generate worldwide savings of US$17 trillion by 2050. The Global Commission on Economy and Climate, an independent organisation comprising former finance ministers and leading research institutions from Britain and six other countries, found climate-smart cities would spur economic growth and a better quality of life – at the same time as cutting carbon pollution. These investments could also reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 3.7 Gt CO₂e per year by 2030, more than the current annual emissions of India. With complementary national policies such as support for low-carbon innovation, reduced fossil fuel subsidies, and carbon pricing, the savings could be as high as US$22 trillion according to the report.

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September 7, 2015

Employment is increasingly dependent on an ability to get on with people ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • Knowledge, News, Technology, Workplace

It can be heartening to learn that there will still be a role for humans in the forthcoming world of robots, drones and driverless vehicles. Inevitably, it is those skills that are hard to automate that will define many of the human jobs of the near future and so one of the skills that will continue to attract paid employment will be the ability to get on with other people. This skill has already defined the labour market for the past 35 years and helped to narrow gender differences in the job market. These are the main conclusions of a new report published by David Deming of the US based National Bureau of Economic Research. According to his working paper “The Growing Importance of Social Skills in the Labor Market,” which is currently awaiting peer review, nearly all job growth since 1980 has been in occupations that depend to a large extent on well developed social skills.

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September 4, 2015

UK surveyors remain slow to adopt BIM despite awareness of risks ⁰

by Mark Eltringham • News, Property, Technology

According to a new survey from the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors, around a half (49 percent) of surveyors do not use Building Information Modelling (BIM) on a regular basis, despite the fact that a significant majority (74 percent) have considered the business case and a similar proportion (73 percent) acknowledge that non-adoption will create significant challenges for the UK construction sector. When asked for the reason for non-adoption. around two thirds (68 percent) feel they lack the information to adopt BIM properly, a third (31 percent) claim there is no need for their own firm and a quarter (26 percent) say they lack the technical skills needed for adoption. This is in spite of that fact that over half of all respondents (55 percent) say that they are currently working with architects that use BIM.

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September 2, 2015

We need to do more than pay lip service to workplace wellbeing ⁰

by Ann Clarke • Case studies, Comment, Wellbeing, Workplace design

Too many companies continue to talk about employees as their ‘greatest asset’ yet their fine words are not always not borne out in their behaviour, be that through working culture, remuneration or environment. With more and more investors using employee wellness and engagement as a barometer for the health, stability and culture of the business – the concept of workplace wellbeing is finally garnering the attention it deserves. Our workplace behaviours, cultures and environments are not keeping us fit, well, productive, happy or profitable. Finally businesses are accepting their moral responsibility to take better care of their people. So what affects employee productivity, creativity and happiness and how can changes to the workplace promote the best financial and moral outcomes for businesses and employees alike?